Jennifer was born Phyllis with one A Isley the , only child of Phil R. and Flora Mae Suber Isley , in Tulsa , Oklahoma. At the time of her birth , her pa-rent were owners, operators and stars of the Isley Stock Company, touring the Southwest with tent-showversions of such plays as " East Lynne " and ' The OldHomestead ". Jennifer`s cradle was a traditional theatrical trunk.She first learned to walk backstage. However , whenshe attained the age of four they decided that was nolife for a growing child and enrolled her in a pre- kindergarten class in the Ursuline Academy in Dallas , Texas.

When they moved to a Oklahoma City wher Jennifer started and finished grade school at the Edgemere School.She was already showing symptoms of becoming the greatbeauty she is today and in her last year was chosen May Queen. The family moved to Tul sa , she took drama and speechtraining and appeared in school plays while attending the Monte Cassino high school run by the Benedictine Sisters .She won a scholastic medal in Latin and at an annual stateelocution contest held in Oklahoma A. & M. College , wonthe first prize. Although her father hoped she`d be a lawyer , the fami-ly agreed to let her become an actress --if she could -and though she `d never seen Katherine Cornell she wrote the famous actress for advice. Miss Cornell replied, urgingJennifer to continue with her schooling before attempting the stage. The summer after graduation from Monte Cassino where forthe second time in her life , she was chosen May Queen sheplayed ingenue roles with the Ted North Players, well - knownMid- Western theatrical group . She enrolled in NorthwesternUniversity at Evanston that fall, a choice dictated by its famedspeech courses.

The following summer se worked with both the Ted North Players and the Harley Sadler Players - an experience thatmade her impatient to get to New York . Her father thoughtshe should try Hollywood but Jennifer disagreed . She felttht an actress should be schooled in the theater before attem-ting the screen. She persuaded her father to send her to NewYork to the American Academy of Dramatic Arts for a year.

Diana Barrymore was a fellow student at the Academy as waas Robert Walker , whom she married in Tulsa , January 2 1939 and who is the father of her two boys , Robert Walker Jrborn April 15, 1940 and Michael , born March 17, 1941. Theywere divorced june 20 , 1945 .

Jennifer tried her luck in Hollywood but when nothing happened , returned to New York . Soon she was making summertheater appearances and at Paul Gilmore `s Little Theatre in New York . They aroused the interest of an agent , Robert Kennedy.who took Jennifer to Katherine Brown , New York representative for Film Producer David o. Selznick.

A reading for Selznick resulted in a screen test and Selznicksigned her. It was a fateful meeting. Nearly 10 years later theywere to be married. Following a quick trip to the Coast for a William Saroyan playin Santa Barbara in 1941. Jennifer returned to New York. With noscreen role in the offing. she studied dancing with Polly Korchein and returned to the Academy to study diction with D`Angelo andacting with Sanford Meisner. Director Henry King recalls : " A man stood behind the camera waving a stick ; the girls focused their rapt attention onthat stick. The other five did very well. But only Jennifer lookedas if she saw a Vision".

She was chosen as one of the six final contestants and in theirfinal test , the six were asked to show the reactions of Bernadetteas she saw " The Vision".